Over the past several years, we’ve all navigated waves of uncertainty; globally, professionally, and personally. Whether you’re dealing with the emotional weight of a job search, managing the unpredictability of a business, adjusting to a recent layoff, or simply just trying to keep your head above water day-to-day, it’s okay to not always be okay. While some days may be tougher than others, even in the hardest moments, a spark of encouragement can offer much-needed clarity and comfort.
In honor of Mental Health Awareness Month, we’ve curated 20 powerful quotes offering empathy, motivation, and perspective to help you ignite that spark. While reading through, take these words as a moment of pause and a reminder that you are not alone. And even the smallest step is still a step forward.
- “Staying positive does not mean that things will turn out okay. Rather it is knowing that you will be okay no matter how things turn out.” – Garth Ennis
- “Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the things you did.” – Mark Twain
- “Hardships often prepare ordinary people for an extraordinary destiny.” – C.S. Lewis
- “If you believe it will work out, you’ll see opportunities. If you believe it won’t, you will see obstacles.” – Wayne Dyer
- “It’s not whether you get knocked down. It’s whether you get up.” – Vince Lombardi
- “Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, ambition inspired, and success achieved.” – Helen Keller
- “I can be changed by what happens to me. But I refuse to be reduced by it.” – Maya Angelou
- “The only person you are destined to become is the person you decide to be.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson
- “On the other side of a storm is the strength that comes from having navigated through it. Raise your sail and begin.” – Gregory S. Williams
- “The oak fought the wind and was broken, the willow bent when it must and survived.” – Robert Jordan
- “I believe in being strong when everything seems to be going wrong… I believe that tomorrow is another day and I believe in miracles.” – Audrey Hepburn
- “My barn having burned down, I can now see the moon.” – Mizuta Masahide
- “Courage doesn’t always roar. Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying ‘I will try again tomorrow.'” – Mary Anne Radmacher
- “With the new day comes new strength and new thoughts.” – Eleanor Roosevelt
- “Hard times arouse an instinctive desire for authenticity.” – Coco Chanel
- “She stood in the storm and when the wind did not blow her way, she adjusted her sails.” – Elizabeth Edwards
- “Worry does not empty tomorrow of its sorrow. It empties today of its strength.” – Corrie ten Boom
- “Confidence, courage and determined spirit are vital for surviving hard times.” – Lailah Gifty Akita
- “Every adversity, every failure, and every heartache, carries with it the seed of an equivalent or greater benefit.” – Napoleon Hill
- “When everything seems to be going against you, remember that the airplane takes off against the wind, not with it.” – Henry Ford
While these quotes don’t pretend that everything will suddenly fall into place, they do serve as a reminder that challenges can be faced with courage, resilience, and grace. Whatever you’re going through right now, allow yourself the space to feel it, support to navigate it, and encouragement to keep you going. Because you’ve got this! Even if it’s one moment, one step, one day at a time.
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